Internet service for facilitating delivery of inquiries and answers, and accounting for associated financial transactions

• US 20060047528A1
• Filed: 08/31/2004
• Published: 03/02/2006
• Est. Priority Date: 08/31/2004
• Status: Abandoned Application

• Current Assignee: Ayodele M. Alaran, Christos Mousakas, Steven W. Johnson
• Original Assignee: Ayodele M. Alaran, Christos Mousakas, Steven W. Johnson
• Inventors: Johnson, Steven W., Alaran, Ayodele M, Mousakas, Christos
• Application Number:
  US10/930,354
• Publication Number:
  US 20060047528A1
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 705/26
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 20/20 Point-of-sale [POS] network systems
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/0601 Electronic shopping [e-shopping]
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/08 Auctions

Abstract

An internet service for facilitating delivery of inquiries and answers thereto, and accounting for financial transactions associated therewith includes means for (i) a user of the service to specify a geographic region of interest to the user, (ii) the user to broadcast an inquiry to a subscriber population, with the subscriber population being associated with the geographic region of interest to the user, (iii) means for the subscriber population to receive the inquiry from the user so that an evaluation may be made by the subscriber population of whether to answer the inquiry, (iv) means for the subscriber population desiring to answer the inquiry to advise the user of a value associated with their answers to be given to the user upon acceptance of the value by the user, (v) means for the user to view an answer selected by the user upon acceptance of the value by the user, and (vi) means for accounting for the value as a debit against an account of the user in the service and as a credit to an account of each one of the subscriber population giving an answer selected by the user.

Claims

1. An internet service for facilitating delivery of inquiries and answers, and accounting for financial transactions associated therewith, said internet service comprising:

means for a user of said service to specify at least one geographic region of interest to said user, in said service;

means for said user to broadcast at least one inquiry to a subscriber population, said subscriber population being associated with said at least one geographic region of interest to said user;

means for said subscriber population to receive said at least one inquiry from said user of said service so that an evaluation may be made by said subscriber population of whether to answer said at least one inquiry;

means for said subscriber population desiring to answer said at least one inquiry to advise said user of a value associated with their answers to be given to said user upon acceptance of said value by said user;

means for said user to view an answer selected by said user upon acceptance of said value by said user; and

means for accounting for said value as (i) a debit against an account of said user in said service and (ii) a credit to an account of each one of said subscriber population giving said answer selected by said user.

2. The internet service of claim 1, further comprising means for said user to evaluate said subscriber population based on feedback from at least one other user.

3. The internet service of claim 1, further comprising means for said user to determine compatibility with said subscriber population.

4. The internet service of claim 1, further comprising means for said user to determine compatibility with at least one other user.

5. The internet service of claim 1, further comprising means for said user to hold private communication with at least one of said subscriber population giving said answer selected by said user.

6. The internet service of claim 1, further comprising means for said user to record performance feedback of each one of said subscriber population giving said answer selected by said user.

7. The internet service as in claim 1, further comprising means for said user to characterize said inquiry so that said subscriber population may readily determine the scope of the inquiry.

8. The internet service as in claim 1, wherein at least one of said subscriber population is a commercial enterprise.

9. The internet service as in claim 8, wherein said at least one commercial enterprise pays said internet service upon an occurrence selected from the group consisting of (i) when said user views said answer and (ii) when said at least one commercial enterprise has an opportunity to answer said inquiry.

10. The internet service as in claim 9, wherein said answer is freely and publicly available through said internet service and said at least one commercial enterprise pays said internet service for each viewing of said answer.

11. The internet service as in claim 1, wherein said user may view at least one previous inquiry.

12. The internet service as in claim 1, wherein said user may view at least one previous answer associated with at least one previous inquiry.

13. The internet service as in claim 8, wherein said user may view at least one previous inquiry.

14. The internet service as in claim 8, wherein said user may view at least one previous answer associated with at least one previous inquiry.

15. An internet service for facilitating delivery of inquiries and answers, and accounting for financial transactions associated therewith, said internet service comprising:

means for a user of said service to broadcast at least one inquiry to a subscriber population, said subscriber population being defined by at least one selected geographic location;

means for said subscriber population to receive said at least one inquiry from said user of said service so that an evaluation may be made by said subscriber population of whether to answer said at least one inquiry;

means for said subscriber population desiring to answer said at least one inquiry to advise said user of a value associated with their answers;

means for said user to view an answer selected by said user; and

means for accounting for said value as a debit against said account of said user upon voluntary payment by said user.

16. The internet service of claim 15, further comprising means for said user to evaluate said subscriber population based on feedback from at least one other user.

17. The internet service of claim 15, further comprising means for said user to determine compatibility with said subscriber population.

18. The internet service of claim 15, further comprising means for said user to determine compatibility with at least one other user.

19. The internet service of claim 15, further comprising means for said user to hold private communication with at least one of said subscriber population giving said answer selected by said user.

20. The internet service of claim 15, further comprising means for said user to record performance feedback of each one of said subscriber population giving said answer selected by said user.

21. The internet service as in claim 15, further comprising means for said user to characterize said inquiry so that said subscriber population may readily determine the scope of the inquiry.

22. The internet service as in claim 15, wherein at least one of said subscriber population is a commercial enterprise.

23. The internet service as in claim 22, wherein said at least one commercial enterprise pays said internet service upon an occurrence selected from the group consisting of (i) when said user views said answer and (ii) when said at least one commercial enterprise has an opportunity to answer said inquiry.

24. The internet service as in claim 23, wherein said answer is freely and publicly available through said internet service and said at least one commercial enterprise pays said internet service for each viewing of said answer.

25. The internet service as in claim 15, wherein said user may view at least one previous inquiry.

26. The internet service as in claim 15, wherein said user may view at least one previous answer associated with at least one previous inquiry.

27. The internet service as in claim 22, wherein said user may view at least one previous inquiry.

28. The internet service as in claim 22, wherein said user may view at least one previous answer associated with at least one previous inquiry.